Cursed
by Rowanfall
Summary: In the night a curse is spoken. Anna must find a way to reverse it, or lose Kristoff and possibly Arendelle forever. And thus the second journey begins, longer and darker than the first. A far more feminist take on Frozen, along with the mythos and folklore of the Netherlands. Not AU, not part of "The Big Four", Kristanna.
1. Part One - Chapter One

**Cursed**

_Part I_

Darkened stars blinked above the frosted river. Their faint reflection was caught in the ice, soft and wavering. Pale mist chilled in the light of the sinking moon, and the forest trees were a green so dark they appeared black. The night lay undisturbed as dawn began to creep in. It was the latest hour, right before day; a dangerous time for walk across the frozen river.

Kristoff hated being in Arendelle. It was crowded and noisy and dirty. He preferred the quiet of the forest, the cold, clean ice. This was where he belonged. Sven silently walked beside him, his harness empty. There was no need to gather ice just now. The two had been harvesting all night. One last walk in his world before returning to Arendelle was all Kristoff wanted.

Although, he did miss Anna. If there was any reason for him to return to that city, besides selling ice, it was probably her.

Sven's cloven hooves made no sound as he stepped, and neither did Kristoff's padded boots. Across the river they walked, until Sven broke the silence with a loud yawn. He blinked sleepily, shaking his head against Kristoff.

"All right, all right, we'll start heading back." He patted the reindeer's furry neck and turned around to begin the walk back across. The sleigh full of ice waited for them near the river's edge.

A noise pierced the air, mild and shrill. It sent shivers down Kristoff's spine and he felt a trickle of fear. Sven crouched low onto the ice, trembling. The scream echoed around the mountains, a cry that summoned terror in the cold night. Then it was gone, as suddenly as it had come.

The ice gatherer waited, listening. After a minute of silence, he shrugged his shoulders and continued walking back, his reindeer on his heels. Then another sound was heard, one the Kristoff knew; a shatter of broken shards and the burst of freed water. The ice underneath them, so steady and reassuring, began to break from behind. Kristoff and Sven watched, their feet frozen in place. The ice burst open, the water underneath pulsing and lapping the jagged floe. Slowly, what looked like a horse began to crawl out, its glowing green eyes fixed on the two starlit figures.

The ice gatherer felt panic gather in his throat. "Sven!" He yelled, jumping on the reindeer's back. "Run!"

Sven stayed in place, terrified. The ice continued to shatter, the horse's hooves slamming and cracking to widen the water's reach.

"Sven, run!" Kristoff grabbed his empty harness and yanked him in other direction, out of sight of the dripping wet horse struggling out of the frozen river.

Sven shook his head, coming to his senses, and galloped away. The cracking ice grew louder and louder. Kristoff looked back to see another horse emerging from the water. Their necks were arched and swanlike, and their backs were incredibly long. Green eyes, glowing and reflecting off the ice, glared at them. The first horse let back his head and roared, sharp teeth glinting silver in the dying starlight.

"Nøkken," Kristoff breathed, horror pulsing through him. "Nøkken!" He kicked Sven, urging him on faster.

They were real. They were real and they were coming after him and Sven. Kristoff knew that they had to get off the river. He prayed that the sun would rise soon and it would stop them.

The screaming came back, stronger and higher. Kristoff clutched at his ears, falling off of Sven as the reindeer tripped in panic. The ice gatherer felt a hot wetness melt through his gloves, and saw his reindeer convulsing as blood stained his furry ears. In shock Kristoff looked at his hand. A dark red spot stared back at him, his green glove ruined. He groaned, covering his ear again. The screaming went on and on, so shrill and loud that neither of the two lying on the ice heard pounding hooves cantering toward them.

"Sven!" Kristoff cried, reaching out for his reindeer. The screaming grew even higher, and Kristoff had to cover his ears again. He curled in on himself, terrified for his reindeer and for his fate. He squeezed his eyes shut, yelling in pain as his ears seemed to want to destroy themselves. His cheek grew raw from rubbing the hard sleet.

"Sven!" he screamed. "Sven!" The reindeer grunted and bellowed in reply, smashing his head against the ice. Bright green lights burned in the frozen water. Seven nøkken ran toward the defenseless man and reindeer. The screaming did not affect them at all. The creatures grinned and laughed with unnaturally sharp teeth, watching as the two cried out and kicked against the ice.

Louder and louder it grew, almost as if the screaming were right above them. It shook the air and Kristoff felt as though the frozen water beneath him were trembling. What on earth could create such a noise?

It stopped, the air vibrating as its echoes ended as well. Kristoff opened his eyes, his ears ringing. He reached out and shook Sven, who was lying still on the ice. "Sven? Buddy, wake up. It's over."

The reindeer didn't stir.

"Sven?" Kristoff sat up, groaning from his sore mind. Red had dripped down Sven's neck and stained his fur. His eyes were shut tightly, his knees pressed against his ears and ice frosted on his muzzle from pounding his head against the frozen water. "Sven!" Kristoff shook him hard, fear paralyzing his heart. "Wake up!"

The reindeer groaned, opening his eyes and slowly lowering his front legs. Kristoff sighed in relief, ruffling the fur on his head. "Come on. Get up." He grabbed the reindeer's harness and hefted him onto his hooves. Sven stumbled on the ice, slipping until he found his footing. Kristoff looked up and saw that they were surrounded. The seven nøkken stood around them, snarling and cackling. Their green eyes glowed against each other, illuminating their white pelts and wolf-like teeth. Sven, still hurt from the noise, crouched low and pressed against his friend.

Kristoff gripped the harness, unsure what to do. He swallowed, staring at the nøkk in front of him. Its laugh was breathy and wild. It turned toward its companion and spoke in a language neither Kristoff nor anyone else understood. The second nøkk nodded and ran off, leaving six for Kristoff and Sven to fight against.

The ice gatherer put his arm around his reindeer. "I know it looks bad, buddy," he swallowed again, straining to keep his voice quiet and level. "Do you think you can run?"

Sven nodded, so slight that Kristoff almost missed it. "You're sure?"

The reindeer nudged his friend, and he almost chuckled in response, except that the seventh nøkk had returned. His long back had stretched to accommodate seven girls, clothed in purple and modestly pretty. Kristoff felt a twinge of fear for them, but then he realized that they were unafraid. They were giggling and whispering into each other's ears, and they seemed to be in no danger.

Then, were these nøkken friendly? Or were these girls here to join in the fun, if they even were girls?

The tallest stepped down, walking barefoot over the ice. Her hair was so long it pooled on the river, and her tattered dress was still in the cold wind. Her eyes were dark red-purple, gleaming slyly. But it was not those details that finally gave her away to the ice gatherer. When she walked, Kristoff could see the reflection of the bottoms of her feet in the ice. She wasn't walking; she was floating. They were banshees, and they were probably the ones who had caused all the screaming earlier. First nøkken, now banshees. He prayed that the sun would rise already, and drive these dark creatures away.

Sven pressed even closer to Kristoff, and he could feel his reindeer trembling. He held his ground, trying to at least appear bold. He wished that he'd stayed in Arendelle. Banshee screaming meant that death was coming, and Kristoff didn't quite want that to happen. Not yet anyway.

The other banshees said nothing, gazing at the ice gatherer and his reindeer. They sat upon the back of the seventh nøkk, grinning at him with wide lips. Their teeth were normal, but it was still unnerving.

The tallest banshee walked to the center of the nøkken circle, the bottoms of her feet reflecting boldly in the ice. Her skin was purplish-blue, and her lips were stained violet. Her eyes bored into Sven's and Kristoff's, liquid red and lavender. She was a ghostly figure, hauntingly beautiful. Kristoff closed his eyes and turned away. He didn't want this ghastly creature being the last thing he ever saw. He tried to picture Anna.

The banshee opened her mouth and called into the predawn sky. A pale call, nothing like the harrowing screams she'd cried earlier. On and on it went, feathery echoing. Then, as if summoned, the sun pierced the horizon, and the ice was bathed in scarlet, coating the banshees and nøkken in deep crimson. The eyes of the banshees changed and their pupils grew larger. The nøkken stamped their hooves and began to laugh again.

Sven nuzzled Kristoff, urging him to open his eyes. He did so, and for a moment, saw that a world of red had replaced the dark. In horror he feared bloodshed, only to realize that the sun had risen with this color. The raucous laughter of the flesh-eating horses seemed unfitting to accompany the sun's return, only the sun, with its deepstained rays, welcomed it.

Kristoff saw that the tallest banshee had mounted the sixth nøkken, and in her place stood a woman. A normal woman, as far as he could tell. She was not a banshee, and she was far too lovely to be a witch. What else did that leave? Kristoff tried to remember all the creatures the trolls had warned him of when he was a child. A huldra? She was a bit old to be one of those. What about a Maras? A possibility, but Maras took a while to change back into their human forms after night, and the sun had just risen. An elf? She wasn't pretty enough to be an elf, and anyway, elves were fair-haired. This woman's hair was dark.

"Oh," she cooed. "How interesting. A reindeer and his pet." She walked over to Sven and gently stroked his nose. "What a lovely creature. Very strong and intimidating."

"You stay away from my reindeer." Kristoff spoke, his voice hoarse, as he pulled Sven away from her touch.

She clicked her tongue. "I'm only teasing. Clearly, you have been frightened into rudeness. Don't worry," she waved her arm at the creatures surrounding them. "They won't hurt you, darling. They're about to become your friends." She smiled at him, her sunken eyes widening as she spoke. She stared at him with an air of skepticism, spoke with a harsh finality that made him angry.

"I'd never be friends with the likes of them." Kristoff spat, holding on to Sven's harness tighter than necessary.

She touched her chest in mock surprise and clicked her tongue again. "The likes of them? Now how can you be so hypocritical?"

Kristoff didn't understand what she was saying, but he'd had enough. Sven was injured and they needed to get away from these monsters before anything truly dangerous occurred. He knew Sven could do it and that he was ready. He felt it as the harness tensed in his hands. Before any of the creatures had a chance to blink, Kristoff leapt on Sven's back and bulldozed through two of the nøkken. The reindeer propelled himself as fast as he could, the sharp nøkken's teeth clacking shut behind him and tearing the fur off his hindquarters. Kristoff turned and kicked a nøkk in the jaw, sending it clattering to the red ice. The seven banshees had gotten off the long-backed nøkken and were standing around the woman, staring out at the retreating figure of the man on his reindeer.

The tallest banshee turned toward the woman with an expectant gleam in her eyes. The woman raised her hand. "Patience. All good things to those who wait." She glared at Kristoff with her intent clear in her mind, a slight grin on her face.

Against the rising sun's light, the woman began to whisper. Dark words swirled in her mouth, leaving her lips and tracing her fingers. Without warning, she flicked her hands toward Kristoff, and the spell was cast.

Kristoff and Sven had barely reached the edge of the river when the black overtook them.

* * *

**Well, that was the beginning of my first Frozen fanfic. I'm going to try and update every week, starting this Friday. Second chapter's almost done, starting third chapter. Need at least three reviews before I put up the second one on Friday.**


	2. Part One - Chapter Two

**Cursed**

_Part I_

Anna woke with an enormous yawn, stretching her arms over her head. Her hair was a red tangle of fluffy proportions, and tufts of it spread out in every which way. She blinked, rubbing her eyes and wiggling her toes as she inched out of her warm bed.

The floor was painted a lively orange-red from the rising sun. Anna let herself smile in childlike joy. Was it a good omen that the sun had risen along with the color of her hair? She knew Elsa would grimace if she said anything like that out loud. Elsa, although born with magic, believed firmly in God. Of all the paintings in the palace, both Elsa and Anna agreed that their favorite was that of Joan of Arc.

Banishing thoughts of good omens from her mind, Anna danced in the light of the new sun. She giggled and fell back on her bed. Perhaps she was so happy because Kristoff was supposed to be returning today. Although Elsa could create ice whenever she wished, most of the kingdom found it disrespectful to use her ice for common purposes. As such, ice gatherers like Kristoff didn't have to worry about losing their livelihoods. Still, she wished he didn't have to leave Arendelle and harvest the frozen water.

Anna's eyes flew open. Kristoff was coming back today! She had to get ready.

She rang for her lady's maid and nibbled on a biscuit from her beside jar while contemplating how she wanted her hair today. In the heat of August, a bun would keep her neck cool, but Kristoff liked double braids. She was still thinking about it when her lady's maid came in.

"Good morning, Princess. Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah, thanks." Anna responded absentmindedly, eating the last of the biscuit. "Heidi, is there any news from court? Elsa said that we're going to have some foreign visits soon." Anna tried to distract herself from thinking about Kristoff's return with royal concerns. Dignitary visits were customary, and allowed Arendelle to decide whether or not to involve itself in trade, alliances or wars. They allowed Anna to see how life was governed outside of their small country.

"News from court? Not that I know of, Princess." Heidi swept the crumbs off of Anna's dresser from the biscuit. "Although I did hear that Delegate Mulan was unable to visit after all. Much too far away."

Anna sighed, allowing herself to gaze at her red hair and wide eyes in the mirror. She tried to imagine what she would look like if she had come from a place that far away. Would her hair be dark? Her eyes slim almonds rather than fat chestnuts? It didn't matter, but she would've liked to have met Delegate Mulan and heard about her country.

"I wish I could go on a dignitary visit. I wish Elsa would let me." Anna put her elbows up on her dresser and blew a puft of hair out of her face.

"Princesses don't go on diplomatic missions. At least not in Arendelle." Heidi chided as she made the bed.

"I know. It's left up to that boring old Representative Thark." Anna spun in her seat, feeling energy course through her. She wanted to do something today. There was an air of busyness and she wasn't part of it. It irritated her. Nothing was so vile as boredom. It killed the spirit and sucked away any hint of enjoyment or ability to appreciate the day.

"Princess?" Heidi paused in her cleaning, questioning her lady's mood. The Princess appeared almost unhappy. "Is something not right?"

"No, no, nothing's wrong, Heidi." Anna's look said something entirely different however.

Heidi walked over to her lady and began brushing out her hair. "I know you want to be involved in the way the kingdom runs, Princess. But it's simply not the way things are done in Arendelle. Queen Elsa makes the decisions, and it's no easy task, trust me."

"I know. I just wish I had something to do." Anna pouted, wanting a way to burn all the energy she'd had since she was a child.

"Well, isn't the ice gatherer coming back today? That always lifts your spirits." Heidi almost lost her grip on the brush as Anna jumped from her chair.

"You're right! Heidi, how should I do my hair? Oh, and what dress should I wear? The pink? Nah, it doesn't go with my hair. I don't even know why I have a pink dress…"

Heidi's shoulders slumped as Anna tore through the clothes in her wardrobe. She'd spent most of last week tidying that closet.

…

Elsa sat quietly before her mirror as her lady's maid added the finishing touches to her tightly woven braid-bun. A few pale crystals were tucked away in her hair, her maid's personal idea and pride.

"Thank you, Greta. It looks beautiful." Elsa gently lifted the corners of her lips and nodded at the maid.

Greta grinned and bowed, her own quiet way of appreciating thanks. Elsa got up from her chair and walked across the room. "Why don't you go and see if Heidi needs your help today? I have a feeling Anna may be more overwhelming than usual."

Greta smiled and opened her mouth as if to giggle. She bowed once more and disappeared out the door.

Elsa laid a hand upon her head and tried to calm the whirlwind of thoughts inside. There were so many things to be done, and she felt as though she were frozen in tiredness. She never had enough sleep, never rested her hands enough from writing, her mouth from speaking, her mind from thinking. It was too much work sometimes.

Elsa had considered allowing Anna to help, but then dismissed the notion almost as quickly as it had arrived. Anna was immature, for lack of a better word, and as much as Elsa loved her sister, she could be incredibly naïve. And she could not properly represent Arendelle.

Elsa stretched out her arms and let a small breeze of crystallized snow brush through her bedroom. Greta was always shivering whenever she came in, as the Queen's room was naturally the coldest place in the castle.

First things first. Elsa headed out the door and downstairs for a breakfast followed by morning reports. It would be a busy day, but she intended to conquer it.

….

Greta silently laughed at poor Heidi's worn expression. All her hard work dismissed in a few short minutes by an overeager princess. Greta thanked God that she was lady's maid to the calm, gentle Queen and not her hyper younger sister. She was much older than little Heidi, and had been given the higher position due to experience.

Greta walked over to Heidi and laid a comforting hand on her elbow. With a sympathetic nod and flicker of eyelashes, Heidi understood that Greta would help clean up afterwards. "Thank you, Greta." Heidi whispered, hardly tearing her gaze away from the excited princess.

"Heidi, do you know that green and white dress I wore last year?" Anna turned away from the devastated closet, facing her maid with a nervous tension, her eyes wide and her pupils dilated so that she appeared a very young girl.

Greta walked over and began to sort through the pile of dresses to pull out all the green. She was quite good at knowing what to do without being asked.

"What dress do you mean, Princess?" Heidi asked, going through the viridian and blanc dresses that Greta had sorted.

"The mid-sleeved one. I wore it when…" her words trailed off, and Heidi smiled knowingly. "I know which dress you mean, Princess."

Greta stared at the exchange without a hint of understanding. She was the Queen's maid after all, not the Princess's. She tapped Heidi's wrist to let her know that there would be some explaining to do later.

Lady's maids, as loyal as they are to their ladies, can be habitual gossips, and Greta and Heidi were no exception, despite their difference in age.

Heidi found the dress and laid it out on the bed. While she helped the Princess bathe, Greta swept the floor and brushed flecks of dust off the dress. She found a loose seam and stitched it up with deft fingers. Lotte, the kitchen maid, came in and cleaned the fireplace, adding wood and relighting it before Greta was finished sewing the seam back up.

Greta left after she was done sewing up the seam. There was still the Queen's floor to be swept, and one of her corsets had a frayed ribbon that needed mending. And the bathtub needed cleaning before tonight. Greta decided to see if one of the housemaids could do it for her instead.

Anna scrubbed her already clean face with rose-scented soap, watching the bubbles pop in the mirror. Heidi brushed her wet hair down her back, rubbing rose petal water in as she went. Anna put on her robe and went to sit in front of the fire to let her hair dry.

Heidi cleaned up the sink and put away the soaps. She dried the floor and cleaned the wet hair out of the brush. Then she laid the irons in the fire to get warm. She reminded herself to thank Greta for helping later.

"How would you like your hair today, Princess?" Heidi asked, polishing her lady's embroidered shoes, careful to avoid the thread.

"Double braids, for sure." Anna held her hands to her face and let out a squeak of happiness. Heidi couldn't help laughing to herself. Her lady could be such a young girl at times. And yet, Heidi was sure that her lady was capable of great things. Greta always gloated on how polite and wise the Queen was, but Heidi didn't see much in her. She was quiet and aloof; she doubted that Greta could ever be friendly with the Queen the way she was with the Princess.

Of course, the Queen never turned an orderly wardrobe into a pile of dresses on the floor, but Heidi was willing to overlook that. After all, she hadn't had much planned for this afternoon anyway.

"I'm sure your hair is dry now, Princess." Heidi offered her the dress and Anna bit her lip in excitement.

Once the hair had dried, the corset and dress could be worn. Then the hair was brushed out, straightened with the irons, and brushed again. Finally it was stylized into the braids she had asked for. The last step was powdering. A hint of rouge on the cheeks and a bit of lip red was all the young Princess needed.

This entire process was repeated almost every day, and it took less than forty minutes, from the Princess waking up to the moment she stepped out her door. Lady's maids had to work quickly. Heidi had learned that early on.

"How do I look, Heidi?" Anna twirled in her dress, lifting her arms to the ceiling like a bird ready to take wing.

"Like a lady of Arendelle." Heidi smiled in reply.

"I _feel_ like a whirlwind. I need to go do something!" Anna stopped twirling, letting her arms fall back to her sides.

"Then go! The Queen will have already finished her breakfast if you don't hurry." Heidi pushed Anna out the door, and the Princess willingly complied. She raced down the hallway, her braids dancing in the air.

Heidi turned and sighed upon seeing the mess of dresses waiting for her on the floor. They would just have to wait a bit more. It was nearly breakfast time for the servants as well.

* * *

**I know I didn't get three reviews, but I got such a nice one from somebody who'd followed me here from the YJ community (you know who you are, and thank you again!) as well as three alerts. So why not? **

**As this chapter doesn't have much plot, I'll try and upload the next one much faster. Maybe even tomorrow?**

**Reasons why I decided to make Elsa and Anna Christian: the funeral for their parents has a priest, Elsa's coronation has a priest, the kingdom is afraid of Elsa because she "evil" magic, and the Joan of Arc painting. Don't rage, just decided to stick to evidence from the source material. Wouldn't make much sense for them to be worshiping Nordic gods in my mind.**

**Don't you hate it when servants are basically degraded into beings not even worthy enough to have their own personalities and names in fan-fictions? Yeah, me too :D Besides, they'll be important later!**

**(Warm hugs to whoever can guess my inspiration behind the servants before the next chapter, when it will become painfully obvious)**

**Wow, this is a long author's note! I leave you with a request to please review! It keeps me warm in this freezing weather and makes me smile.**


	3. Part One - Chapter Three

**Cursed**

_Part I_

"Dear God, Lotte, hurry up with that porridge! I swear you take longer to cook that mush than Moses took coming down the mountain with the Ten Commandments!"

Heidi sighed, darning a pair of her stockings as she and most of the other servants waited at the main table for breakfast. "It wouldn't be morning if it weren't for Miss Hilde's biblical allusions and temper."

"You can say that again." William, one of the footmen, nodded as he came down from serving. "I can't help but think she's being hard on poor Lotte."

"She should be hard. It's time we had breakfast, and if Lotte ever wants to be more than a kitchen maid she needs to work fast." Most of the servants murmured in agreement to Miss Sanna's statement. Not that anyone really did so out of friendship.

"William, what on earth on you doing down here?" The butler, Mr. Ruben, scolded from the doorway. "Lucas and Bram can't manage up there on their own!"

"But sir, the Queen's already eaten." William stood up from his chair in respect as he made his excuse.

"And what makes you think the Princess deserves a less prestigious breakfast? Get up there."

William obeyed, realizing his mistake. He was new, having previously worked with the palace horses as a groomer. For some reason or other Mr. Ruben didn't think that two footmen were enough for the Queen and Princess, and he'd hired the boy on a recommendation from the Stablemaster.

The housemaids giggled as William left for the kitchen, and Heidi rolled her eyes before letting a smile creep on her face. William would learn, she hoped. A touch on the shoulder let her know that Greta had sat beside her.

"Thank you again for helping me this morning," Heidi said, focusing once more on darning. Greta waved her hand to let Heidi know it was nothing.

Lotte came out of the kitchen with bowls and utensils, and behind her two hall boys brought napkins, plates of butter and cups of sugar. They set the table for breakfast as the cook, Miss Hilde, brought out the pot of steaming porridge. The cook's assistants, Jikke, Fenna, and Sophie, brought plates of sweet bread and bowls of cut pears for dipping.

After everyone had been served and the butler and footmen had come back down, the kitchen workers were allowed to find seats as well. Lotte and Jikke sat next to Heidi and Greta. Heidi tucked away her stockings and the footmen took off their gloves. Miss Hilde squeezed herself between Miss Sanna and Lucas. Sophie and Fenna sat at the far end, beside the housemaids. Mr. Ruben, seated at the head, said grace, and they began to eat.

Lotte spooned the porridge so as to let it cool. "I'm sorry breakfast took so long. The stove wasn't working properly."

"A poor workman always blames his tools." Miss Hilde recited as she bit into a pear.

Lotte looked down at her porridge in silence, and Heidi nudged her and grinned. "It probably was the stove. That thing was old when Adam was a boy!"

Greta almost choked on a spoonful of porridge as she laughed, and Lotte couldn't help biting her lip to keep from giggling. Jikke coughed into her napkin, Lucas snorted and the housemaids snickered until Mrs. Bjerke, the head housemaid, made them stop.

"Let me know if you've still got that headache, Bram." Miss Sanna muttered, taking a piece of sweet bread and tearing it in half. Miss Sanna was the royal physician.

"There's no need. Fynn took a look. Gave me some pills." Bram responded in his oily way. Even with Miss Sanna, his confidant, he could be rude.

"Fynn? Let me see those pills." Miss Sanna put on her spectacles and stretched out her hand. Bram obliged, placing two white capsules on her palm. Miss Sanna examined them before putting them in her pocket. "Come by my office later Bram."

Bram shrugged, and at the far end of the table Fynn let his head hang in disappointment. It would take a long time for the physician's apprentice to master his craft.

…

Anna skidded to a stop before the table. "Oh, thank God you're still here!" She smiled at the thought of having breakfast with her sister. She didn't know why Elsa always arranged to be woken earlier, but it annoyed Anna to no end how they almost never ate a meal together.

"Good morning, Anna." Elsa hardly looked up from the papers beside her near-empty plate. Behind her, Lucas and Bram stood with the serving dishes.

"Oh, is William sick?" Anna asked, taking her seat.

"No, Princess." Mr. Ruben answered, appearing in the doorway with William next to him carrying a dish of flower-shaped breakfast rolls. The footmen served their Princess, and Anna made sure to take two rolls from William, giving him a reassuring smile. Ruben could be harsh.

"So, is there any news?" Anna asked, trying to reel her sister away from the papers, and to distract herself from thoughts of Kristoff.

"Not much. Taxes are bearing their burden, the way they always do, and trade this year wasn't that successful. The midsummer freeze I created hasn't been so good for our farmers." Elsa showed no sign of self-pity. She simply stated the fact that the agricultural hardships were her fault. However, she was determined not to make that mistake again and to rectify her error. "But I hope my ability to keep the ice gatherers' ice from melting will provide us with a valuable new resource to bargain with."

"Maybe we could use your powers to provide irrigation? That way, we could use lands that were previously unfarmable." Anna suggested, biting into a roll.

Elsa looked up from the papers and stared at her sister with her jaw slack. "That's quite a good idea Anna."

Anna smiled, glad for the compliment and her sister's attention, "Thank you. Is the Princess from the Sol kingdom still coming?"

"Yes, I think so. She's not due till a fortnight though. I was hoping the foreign delegate would be coming as well, but she sent a letter today apologizing." Elsa looked up and speared a square of pear with her fork. "I don't know who else to invite. The Sol Princess said she had urgent information that needed to be relayed in person."

"Then maybe it's better if she comes alone and has the palace to herself." Anna tried to look on the bright side of things. At least _someone_ would be coming.

"That may be true. Anyway, it will certainly be better for us. One delegate at a time is all I want to handle." Elsa folded her napkin and placed it next to her plate as she got up from her seat. "Have a good day Anna." She turned around and addressed Lucas. "Please compliment Miss Hilde on the breakfast. I know how difficult it can be to get fresh fruit this late in the summer." And with that she left, rifling through her papers to see what else there was on her agenda.

Anna sighed, resting her elbows on the table. How she hated eating alone.

…

Jikke and Lotte were busy cleaning up the servant's hall and resetting the table as the outdoor servants and the second round of guards came for breakfast. The first round of guards ate the earliest, before the indoor servants. It was set up that way so that the palace would never be left unguarded while the soldiers rested. Even their sleep schedules were staggered, so that there was always a few who were awake and alert.

The outdoor servants, the gardeners, the groomers, the stable hands, the Stablemaster and Head Gardener, ate afterwards because the hall wasn't large enough to accommodate all the servants at once. This was also why the first group of soldiers was so large and second was so small. Being part of the second group meant more prestige. They ate with the outdoor servants, but they were more disciplined, more experienced, and more alert. That's why there weren't so many of them.

Jikke had told Lotte all this a few days ago, her being a brand new kitchen maid. Still, Lotte found it aggravating that the kitchen staff had to be awake so early to cook all these meals; her earliest of all since she woke up all the indoor servants and took care of the palace fireplaces.

Greta and Heidi had left for the laundry room, to finish up their sewing and gabbing. The footmen were busy with their livery, Mr. Ruben making sure that their clothing was in immaculate condition. The housemaids had been sent off to different parts of the castle, to see what needed to be cleaned. Miss Sanna and Fynn were alone in the physician's office. Lotte had hoped to have a moment to herself, but Jikke reminded her that as soon as the third breakfast was done, it'd be time to start cooking lunch. Four different lunches: one for the first soldiers, the indoor servants, the outdoor servants and second soldiers, and the Queen and Princess. And of course there was always dinner after that.

Lotte wondered why there wasn't another kitchen maid to help her. There were the two hall boys, but they were terribly young and couldn't do much in the kitchen other than simple tasks, like peel potatoes or cut up fruit or knead bread dough. Jikke had told her that it was rare to have more than one kitchen maid. "You can have two or three cook's assistants. But it's best it have only one maid. That way the rest of us can focus on teaching just you, and if you make a mistake it's not such a bad thing."

As the stable hands and gardeners began to trickle in, Jikke and Heidi abandoned the clean table and finished the work in the kitchen. This time, Jikke cooked the porridge.

"You had your chance. You'll get another one, but for now you're sticking to the basics." Miss Hilde scolded Lotte, "Here, dry these." She pointed at a waiting pile of wet kitchenware.

She began to dry, watching everyone go about their work. Lotte was bewildered sometimes by how much Jikke, Fenna, Sophie and Miss Hilde could accomplish. They were quick workers, and the food for the royals always looked perfect.

Jikke sidled up to Lotte. "You'll be able to take a bit of break while the outdoor staff eats. I'm sure they have interesting stories to tell."

"Will there be room enough for me in there?"

"Of course there will be. After all, they've lost a groom, remember? William's part of the indoor staff now." Sophie answered, washing the pears. Jikke took a freshly dried plate and poured a tiny spoonful of porridge. She dipped her finger in the mush and scrunched her brow. "It needs a bit more cinnamon. Fenna?"

"Here you are." Fenna quickly grated a cinnamon stick and handed Jikke the powder, which she sprinkled into the porridge.

Sophie tapped Lotte on her shoulder, "Why don't you take the spoons and bowls out? I can get a hall boy to take the napkins."

"But what about drying the dishes?" Lotte asked, confused by the sudden switching of tasks.

"Well, Fenna can do that, or the other hall boy. Go on, take a breather. You've had a rough start to your day." Sophie pushed a stack of dried bowls into her hands and shoved her out the door.

Lotte sighed, sure she would never be able to understand her way around a kitchen the way they did. She set the table, watching as the rest of the outdoor staff and the second soldiers came in.

She turned to go back and get the spoons from the kitchen when she bumped into one of the footmen.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Lotte. I wasn't looking were I was going."

"It's alright, William. It were only an accident. Be glad I wasn't carrying nothing." Lotte grinned up at the tall servant. "Why are you in the servant's hall? I though Mr. Ruben was making you clean your livery?"

"He is, but he let me come down for a moment." William looked over at the few empty spots left on the table.

"Will you save me a seat? Sophie said I could take a minute for myself while they're eating; find out a bit more about the palace."

"Course, I will. But you better hurry." William said, as he strode over and sat beside a groomer, leaving Lotte standing in the hallway. She quickly fetched the spoons and helped a hall boy reach the napkins before rushing back to the table.

She sat by William, who broke away from the conversation to introduce her to the two grooms he had been talking with."Lotte, this is Petter and Rolf. They're the brothers who taught me everything I needed to know to take care of horses."

"Yeah, when he came to us, he hardly knew nothing." Petter laughed. Their accents were heavy and coarse, making it clear that they were from the Forest. Townspeople accents weren't much better, but they lacked the weight of Forest voices.

"He wasn't that stupid. After all, he's a footman now." Rolf shoved his brother, making him spill porridge on himself.

"Hey, watch it! I just washed these." Petter glared angrily at Rolf, but one look from the Stablemaster made him quiet down. "Anyways, ma says that she'll be coming out of the Forest in the fall. It's too dangerous now, 'specially with all the rumors going about."

"What rumors?" Lotte asked, interrupting. Miss Hilde would have made her scrub the dried porridge bowls if she had seen her rudeness.

"Nothing much, miss. Our ma likes to worry." Rolf answered, hardly looking up from buttering his sweet bread.

"The neighbors lost a son. They can't find him anywhere. Ma thinks it might've been something unnatural that got him."

"Well, she's not the only one. My cousin managed to get himself lost, too." A stable hand from across the table threw in. "My aunt's likely to kill him when they do find him. He left the sled out in the middle of the Forest, so any fool could come along and steal it."

"Maybe there is something going on. It might not be something unnatural, but it could be wolves, or an enemy."

"I doubt it was wolves. My cousin's a grown man, he can handle himself." The stable hand added, biting into a pear.

"Yeah, and so was the neighbor's son." Petter nodded.

Suddenly Lotte felt a tapping on her shoulder. "Come quick. It's a disaster; one of the hall boys dropped flour all over the place." Fenna pulled her out if her seat and Lotte rushed to the kitchen.

William got up as well. "I'd best be getting back. Tell your ma if she's got no place to stay, my mother would be happy to welcome her for a bit at her house."

"Those are kind words. Thank you." Rolf got up and patted William on the back. "And I'm glad for you, Will. Truly, I am."

"Thank you." William smiled, and he turned and headed back up the stairs.

…

Anna stared out of her bedroom window, wondering how it could be so cold in the mountains this late in summer. How it could be cold enough for there to be ice to harvest.

"Princess, I'm sure he's alright." Heidi hung the princess's green and white dress back in the closet, along with all the other dresses. She managed to find a few hours to sort them, but she would need more to truly organize it again.

"I'm going to ask Elsa to send some guards out."

Heidi stopped worrying over the wardrobe. "That seems drastic, Princess."

Anna turned away from the window, and Heidi rushed over to her, stroking her back to calm her. She was sobbing, brushing away her tears with the back of her hand.

"I'm sorry, Heidi. It's only – all the other gatherers have returned. None of them have seen him. And if anything happened to him, I – I don't know what I'd do." Anna hiccupped, and Heidi poured her a glass of water from the pitcher beside her bed.

"Thank you Heidi." She drank, and seemed to calm a bit.

"Princess, perhaps he couldn't find his way. William says that a few people have been getting themselves lost in the Forest." Heidi didn't know why she was telling her Princess this. They were probably rumors, but she wanted to calm her from worrying about worse situations.

"Well, then a search party isn't a bad idea, now?"

Heidi blinked, and let herself smile slightly. "I guess not, Princess. Would you like me to tell the Queen?"

"I'll tell her right now. Could you go downstairs and ask the kitchen maid or whoever's still up to prepare extra food early tomorrow?" Anna got up from her seat beside the window and strode to the door.

"Yes, Princess." Heidi bowed her head, wondering how Miss Hilde and the rest of the servants would take the news. One day missing and already the Princess was sending out a search party – for an ice gatherer! Heidi knew she was right not to tell Greta that the Princess had kissed him. It would have caused the rumor uproar of the century among the servants.

* * *

**I am so sorry, everyone! I've hardly had time to work on this, but on the bright side, we're back to the plot! Yay!**

**I need to thank all the people who have been alerting and favoriting this story, as well as all those who took the time to review. Thank you all! You give me even more reason to keep writing :D**

**Yes, school has been driving me to insane amounts of work. I was going to finish this chapter up yesterday, but my brothers took me to see the LEGO Movie. It's a fantastic film, go see it everyone! I came home and was too tired to do much other than listen to "Everything is Awesome!" before I went to sleep :D So you get a Saturday morning chapter of Cursed!**

**Don't worry, we'll see Olaf soon. Probably even the next chapter :D Oh, and my inspiration for the servants was the wonderful British TV series _Downton Abbey_. Quite possibly one of my favorite shows to watch. It's amazing. Go. Go watch it.**

**So, again, I apologize for being late. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and please review! In the meantime, go see the LEGO Movie and/or Downton Abbey and tell me what you think of them!**


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